UEFA set to lift World Cup boycott after FIFA drops Infantino's tournament sell-off plan

UEFA is set to drop its boycott of FIFA competitions after football’s European governing body received assurances that Gianni Infantino’s plan to sell stakes in tournaments including the World Cup to private investors will not be revived.

UEFA and its 55 member associations are due to meet on Thursday ahead of the Champions League draw in Monaco, where the matter is expected to be discussed further. UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin had been among the most vocal critics of the sell-off proposal, and the English FA was among the associations that backed the boycott threat, which could have affected participation in future World Cups.

The most immediate competition at risk was the under-20 Women’s World Cup, scheduled for next month, but that threat now appears to have passed. UEFA had sent a letter to FIFA — backed by all 55 member associations — threatening legal action and outlining two conditions for the boycott to be lifted: the formal withdrawal of the sell-off proposal, and binding assurances it would never be reintroduced. UEFA now appears satisfied that both conditions have been met.

However, dropping the boycott does not signal a broader reconciliation with Infantino. European football’s governing body still wants the FIFA president removed from his role, and Ceferin made his own position clear in a podcast released earlier this week.

“I’m not interested because of two reasons,” Ceferin said on The Rest is Politics, ruling out any bid to succeed Infantino. “One reason is that I love UEFA and I love working here, and I think that at a certain point it’s time to also enjoy life a bit. And the second point is, my credibility is much, much higher if I’m not interested in the position.”

Ceferin also outlined two possible paths forward for Infantino ahead of FIFA’s presidential elections in March. “One option is that he realises that he doesn’t have the support — and that’s not only the political support of the ones who vote, but the political support of the football community, the political support of fans, the political support of the players, former players, coaches,” he said. “And the second option is that he goes to the elections in March, but in that case, I think he will have a candidate against him. I don’t know yet who.”